


the green leaves

by star jonin (FuzzyPurplePenguins)



Series: star child of konoha, assertive dragon of suna [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Redo, Drabbley Chapters, Everyone is Queer, F/F, F/M, Growing Up, M/M, Queer Themes, Teaching, Team Building, Team as Family, Visitor from another Universe, strong females
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-25
Updated: 2019-12-04
Packaged: 2020-03-14 17:14:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 15,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18952477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FuzzyPurplePenguins/pseuds/star%20jonin
Summary: Fukitsu Hoshiko, aka ‘Gurīnsutā’, is something of an enigma in Konoha, but everyone stands and watches when she becomes the assigned jonin-sensei for Team Seven.or: Team Seven get the jonin they deserve, and it changes everything.





	1. three rules, dango, push-ups, personalized training, & kunoichi time

**Author's Note:**

> I have a lot to say before we get started so, strap in.
> 
> So the character of Hoshiko comes from a different superhero universe I created with my best friend. I have permission, of course, to use her characters in this fic, but they won’t be appearing for a long time.
> 
> The main inspiration for this fic was “what if team seven was taught (and basically raised) by a strong female who didn’t come from the Naruto verse?”. There will be a prequel eventually about all the events that happened from Hoshiko landing in the Naruto verse to becoming Team 7’s sensei, but I don’t know when.
> 
> This story was started about a year and a half ago. I’m editing it, but it’s rough, and I’ve always had trouble writing fight scenes, but this was, in part, an exercise in trying to get more comfortable in writing fight scenes.
> 
> Enjoy.

o1:  **_three rules_ **

Uchiha Sasuke is glowering at her, dark eyes hard underneath his bangs. There’s little doubt that kids his age find the look he’s giving her absolutely terrifying, but Hoshiko finds it rather adorable, instead.   
  
He looks like a grumpy kitten. She just wants to pinch his cheeks.   
  
The other two are on the complete opposite of the emotional spectrum. Uzumaki Naruto is bouncing up and down, jumping around. The blonde male is ecstatic to be a ninja (‘finally, believe it!’), a big grin on his face.   
  
Haruno Sakura, meanwhile, has set aside her Uchiha-worship in favor of staring at Hoshiko with starry eyes. In her few years as a member of Konoha’s jonin, Hoshiko’s made a name for herself, and it appears kunoichi hero-worship is alive and well in the Academy.   
  
Hoshiko comes to an abrupt stop in the middle of Training Ground Thirty-Three, whirling around to face her (adorable) little genin. They’re all staring at her still, Sakura and (surprisingly) Naruto waiting for her to speak, while Sasuke’s glower has moved up the scale to an Attempted Death Glare.   
  
Hoshiko smiles easily, clapping her hands together. “So,” She says, cheerful as she can manage. “You three are ninja now, under my command.” 

Hoshiko takes a moment, letting the three genin wait until they’re shifting on their feet. “I have three rules, so listen well. Number One. You will work hard. If you do not, your ass will be sent back to the Academy. Number Two: you will listen to me and follow my orders. If you do not, your ass will sent back to the Academy. And finally, the most important: you will treat your teammates with kindness and respect, and work with them. If you do not, I will have your ass in front of the Hokage and fight tooth and nail for you to be booted off this team and, you guessed it, back to the Academy .”   
  
Dead silence. Sasuke is glaring harder, seemingly about to combust on the spot. Sakura’s pale white, shaking slightly. And Naruto’s jaw is dropped, staring straight at her with what looks like hope in his eyes.   
  
Hoshiko smiles. “Well then, my adorable little genin: any questions?”   


* * *

o2:  **_dango_ **

“Shouldn’t you be training your new little brats, Fukitsu?”   
  
Hoshiko hides a smirk behind a bite of (green) dango as Mitarashi Anko drops into the chair opposite her, holding a plate overflowing with dango. “Lovely to see you too, Anko-chan~.”   
  
The special jounin attempts to stare at her for a second before a smirk cracks her face. “Come on, Hoshiko, I want to hear about your brats.”   
  
“No you don’t,” Hoshiko brushes her hair over her shoulder. “You want to know if I’m ‘torturing’ my ‘brats’,” She says, setting her bare dango stick down.   
  
“Yeah, yeah, same thing,” Anko gestures wildly. “Now come on, spill, there’s a betting pool at T&I.”   
  
The blonde sighs, leaning back in her chair. “They’re running laps,” She says carelessly, picking up her cup of tea.   
  
Anko waits, smirk still in place.   
  
“I may have left a request at the mission desk to be notified whenever Tora needs to be tracked,” Hoshiko says, sweeping her hair over shoulder.   
  
“Oh, you sick son of a bitch!” The purple-haired kunoichi claps in glee. “That is twisted. I knew I loved you for a reason.”

“Yeah, yeah, love you too,” The jounin-sensei says, pushing her empty plate away from her. “I do have a favor to ask.”

“ _ Oh _ ?”

“Naruto’s file shows he’s got a thing for pranks,” Hoshiko takes a sip of her rapidly cooling green tea. “I was hoping you’d take him under your wing for a bit and help mold that affinity into trap-making.”

“You’re going to owe me  _ a lot _ of dango for this, but I am intrigued,” Anko says, eyes sparkling in a fashion that decrees nothing but trouble for Naruto. “What training ground should I collect the little prankster from?”

Hoshiko smiles, wide.

* * *

 

o3:  **_push-ups_ **

“They were supposed to be my team,” Hatake Kakashi says mildly, porn out and slouching slightly.

The blonde barely glances at him, eyes glued to where her kids are doing push-ups. “And yet, you didn’t show an interest until Hokage-sama decided to leave them in my care instead. I fear what they would have turned into under your care.”

Hatake-san’s one visible eye flashes for half a second. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Sakura and Naruto’s potential would have been squandered under your care, in favor of Sasuke,” Hoshiko’s still not looking at him, instead watching as Sakura fumbles and stops. Any more than a minute break and Hoshiko’s gonna have to intervene.

Hatake-san is quiet. “I wouldn’t do that.”

Hoshiko scoffs. “ _ Please _ . Don’t lie to me. You won’t like the consequences.”

“I’m trembling in my sandals,” He says dryly. Hoshiko twitches.

“ **HARUNO** !” She bellows, taking satisfaction in the way Hatake’s hand twitches. “IF YOU DON’T COMPLETE YOUR ALLOTTED NUMBER OF PUSH UPS IN THE NEXT HOUR YOU’RE CATCHING TORA ALL BY YOURSELF THE NEXT TIME IT GETS FREE!”

“Yes, Hoshiko-sensei!” Sakura yelps, and throws herself back into her exercise.

“Maaa, threatening them with Tora is just mean,” Hatake says, and Hoshiko whirls around, teeth set together.

“Hatake-san,” She says, just barely polite. “You are not their sensei. I am their sensei, and I am going to do what I need to do to make them excel in whatever fields they chose. If there comes a day when Sasuke unlocks his Sharingan, I may approach you for your expertise, but do not think you can just tell me what to do.”

“So hostile,” The copy ninja says, shutting his porn, and Hoshiko just scoffs.

“When you show me a reason to be nice to you I will,” She says, and stalks off to go separate Sasuke and Naruto, for they are two inches away from dissolving into a squabble.

* * *

o4:  **_personalized_ ** **_training_ **

Hoshiko appears in the middle of Training Ground Thirty-Three in a whooshing tornado of star-shaped green leaves, and takes glee in the way her students all jolt to their feet at the sight of her.

“C’mon, kiddos,” Hoshiko says, making her way to the entrance to the training ground. “We've got places to be and people to see.”

Her genin scramble to keep up with her. “Hoshiko-sensei, where are we going?” Naruto asks, bouncing. “Do we have a mission to like rescue a princess or-“

“ _ Dobe _ ,” Sasuke says, albeit with a lot less scorn then three weeks previously. “Rescuing a princess would be like an A-rank mission at least.”

Hoshiko smiles as her male students devolve into friendly bickering with very little heat from their Academy days. “I believe I promised to look into some specialized training for you all.”

Her three students perk up at that, looking excited as she guides them towards Training Ground Nine. “You mean that, sensei?” Sakura asks, eyes wide.

“Of course,” Hoshiko turns around, walking backwards briefly so she can ruffle Sakura’s hair. “We’re dropping Sasuke-kun off first.”

The Uchiha, excited about the prospect of personalized training (or, at least, as excited as he gets), smirks a little. “Aa,” He says with such smug satisfaction that Hoshiko kinda wants to add another ten laps to his morning exercises. 

Or make him do five babysitting D-ranks. That might be more effective.

“-URSTING WITH THE POWER OF  **_YOUTH!!!!_ ** ”

“YOSH! GAI-SENSEI!”

“LEE!”

“GAI-SENSEI!”

Hoshiko smirks as her students pale visibly upon stepping onto Training Ground Nine, Maito Gai’s exuberant voice mixing with his mini-me student’s. There’s a rainbow sunset behind them and Gai’s other two students, weapons mistress-in-the-making Tenten and the Hyuuga’s prodigy, Hyuuga Neji, are standing to the side, ignoring their teammates and mock-sparring.

Gai-san notices her instantly and beams, light glinting off his perfectly white teeth as he throws a thumbs up at her. “Yosh! Fukitsu-san, right on time! I never had any doubt!”

Hoshiko grins as she watches horror and realization slowly dawn on Sasuke’s face. “It wouldn’t do at  _ all _ to be anything less than punctual when you so gladly accepted to have Sasuke under your wing for his personal training.”

“I must do what I can to spread the power of YOUTH!” Gai-san bellows. “It will be an honor and pleasure to bestow that upon young Uchiha-kun!”

“Sensei…” Sasuke says, looking at her in horror.

“Gai-san is Konohagakure’s taijutsu master,” Hoshiko smiles, patting the Uchiha’s head. “There’s a lot you can learn from him.”

It’s a testament to the work she’s put into her genin that Sakura and Naruto are doing their best to not look completely amused at Sasuke’s situation.

“Come, Sasuke-san!” Rock Lee bellows. “Let us do a hundred laps around the village! If we cannot do a hundred, let us do two hundred on our hands!”

Sasuke’s absolutely horrified face is a warm, precious moment Hoshiko’s going to remember forever.

* * *

 

o5:  **_kunoichi time_ **

After dropping off Naruto with Anko at the T&I building, Hoshiko takes Sakura by the shoulders and guides her towards the nin shopping district.

“Sensei?” The young kunoichi asks, confused, as they stop outside a kunoichi outfitters.

“You’ve come a long way from the Academy, Sakura-chan,” Hoshiko says kindly. “You have a long way to go, however, if you wanna stick with me and the boys. Do you want that?”

“...yes, sensei,” Sakura says, a little quiet but with a fierce light shining in her eyes.

“Good,” Hoshiko says, pushing the door to the outfitters’ open, allowing Sakura to pass through first. “And you’ve revised your dietary intake based on the nutrition plan I gave you?”

Her pink-haired student nods firmly. Hoshiko, with the help of her perfect memory recall and many lectures from the healers among her friends back  _ there _ , had devised thorough nutritional plans for all her students - less ramen for Naruto, less tomatoes and ongiri for Sasuke, and more meat and variation for Sakura. She’d double checked it with several members of the Akimichi clan before passing them onto her students and, even only half a week in, she was starting to see results.

“Okay then,” The blonde waves off the attendant approaching them and steers Sakura towards the clothing section; this part is up mostly to Sakura, and Hoshiko can only offer support. “As much as I love the red, there’s a reason so many Konoha-nin go with greens, blues, browns, and other dark, earthy shades. Can you guess why that is?”

“It’s so we blend in with the forest,” Sakura says without missing a beat, and throws herself into the thick of it, darting between the racks and comparing various fabrics and styles.

“Ah...hello Hoshiko-san.”

Hoshiko, lost for a moment watching her student, turns her gaze to where Yuuhi Kurenai is smiling at her, new pair of ninja sandals and several packages of fishnets in hand. “Kurenai-san. How are your kids?”

The dark beauty smiles. “An ever-changing work in progress.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Hoshiko snorts. “Sasuke and Naruto find a way to test me every day.”

“Kiba is equally vexing,” Kurenai sighs. “Every day after training him I find I could use a stiff drink.”

“I think we needs a girls’ night,” The blonde laments, one eye still on her student. “Invite Yugao-san and Anko-chan as well.”

“Sounds perfect,” Kurenai says. “Friday, The Sharp Shinobi, 8pm?”

“See you there,” Hoshiko says, nodding goodbye as her fellow sensei heads up to the cashier. After watching Kurenai for a moment more (she was  _ gorgeous _ , after all) the blonde turned back to her student, who was holding armfuls of fabric and waiting for her.

“Let’s go get a basket,” The jounin says. “I’ve got some ideas for your hair…”

_**~tbc** _


	2. summoning nincats, kunoichi talk, & mission prep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Contemplated whether I wanted to leave the last scene in - it’s outfit exposition that is slightly cringy - but it highlights some things that are Potentially Important, so.
> 
> Enjoy.

o6:  **_summoning nincats_ **

Fourteen days later, Hoshiko observes her genin with a satisfied smile on her lips. Two weeks into their daily routine of team training, individual training, and missions, and her genin are really starting to grow, to show initiative, to seek out new knowledge.

Sasuke’s attitude has also started to very visibly thaw. The first day of their new routine he had, after learning that Sakura was getting her personalized training under Hoshiko herself, practically stomped over and demanded why  _ Sakura _ was getting training for their sensei and he had been hoisted onto another team.

Hoshiko had let him rant, lips curving slowly, and had then very dryly said that if Sasuke wanted in on kunoichi-tailored  lessons, he was welcome. 

Sasuke had, perhaps predictably, gone bright red, Sakura and Naruto had lost their shit laughing, and the whole thing was quickly forgotten (for  _ now _ ).

So, now that they were all blossoming and heading towards being able to take C-Ranks, it was time for her adorable students to meet her summons.

“Okay, my adorable little genin,” The blonde calls her students’ attention away from the thick strategy problem scrolls she’d given them at the start of the week. “We’re going to do things a little differently today; no individual training this afternoon. You’ll do your laps and exercise sets during that time period. Your other teachers have been informed of that fact.”

“Hoshiko-sensei, what’s with the change?” Naruto asks, very carefully rolling up his strategy scroll. “Did we do something wrong?”

Sakura and Sasuke, although not confirming vocally, look like they agree with his opinion, staring at her in what almost looks like worry.

“Calm down,” Hoshiko says, smiling brightly. “I thought it was about time we started learning to work as a team.”

“...I thought we’d already started doing that,” Sasuke says slowly, obviously thinking of all the team-building exercises she heaped on them with little to no notice at the most opportune times.

Hoshiko’s favorite was waking them all up at two am, dumping them outside Konoha’s gates with minimal supplies, and leaving them to survive on their own for the weekend. She’d been monitoring from nearby, of course, but her genin’s little “weekend survival” had turned out to be amusing gossip for Konoha jounin for  _ weeks _ afterward.

“This isn’t a three-man cell, Sasu-chan,” She says, enjoying the little pout her comment earns. “It’s actually a  _ four-man _ cell.”

Her genin suddenly look extremely excited. “Are you going to show us some of your super cool abilities, sensei?” Naruto asks, bouncing up and down on his feet.

“We’ll get to that,” Hoshiko reassures him, threading her fingers through a long chain of hand seals. “But there’s a couple of someones you guys need to meet first.”

Finishing with a tiger seal and biting lightly on her thumb, the jounin slams her hand on the ground, watching with a little smirk as her genin’s eyes glue to the puffs of smoke surrounding her.

_ Pop. Pop. Pop _ . Hoshiko takes immense pleasure in the little “cool” that slips out of Sasuke’s mouth as Orenji, Shiro, and Gōrudo, three of Hoshiko’s big catnin summons appear in the middle of the training grounds.

“Hoshiko-chan!” Orenji says happily, instantly rubbing his face against her legs. Shiro and Gōrudo quickly follow suit, and Hoshiko soon has three tiger nincats twining around her legs.

“Hi you guys,” She laughs, petting Shiro, who’s the closest. “I wanted to introduce you to my genin, and get some training done so we can work together excellently in the future.”

This statement causes her tigers to turn their attention to her genin, so it’s no surprise that in quick succession Shiro has corralled Sasuke into petting him, Orenji is laugh-purring loudly at something Naruto has said, and Gōrudo is sprawled on his back as he ‘allows’ Sakura to scratch his belly.

It takes no time at all to introduce her tigernin to her genin and vice versa (“Really, sensei?” Sasuke drawls. “You named them after their  _ colors _ ?” “They came to me  _ with names _ , Sasuke-chan. Two more sets of laps this afternoon.”). After that, Hoshiko takes turning pairing her genin up with her tigers and running them through the Horrendous Obstacle Course from the Pits of Hell (her genins’ name for it, not hers) before finally sending all of her genin and her tigers on a long-winded, cooperative scavenger hunt throughout Konoha while she went out to a late brunch with Anko, Kurenai, and Yugao.

Returning after brunch and her genins’ lunch to find her students all passed out and sleeping on top of her napping tigers made for a perfect photographic moment and her students’ eventual sleepy glowers totally worth it.

* * *

 

o7:  **_kunoichi talk_ **

“I’m so  _ horny _ ,” Kurenai says into a cocktail, looking pitiful and pissed at the same time. “Like, great, you’re a gentleman, now please stick your dick in me.”

This causes laughter and cackling from the rest of the table; Hoshiko, practically crying from laughing so hard, has to put her beer down so she doesn’t choke on it.

“Show up at his house in a  _ really little _ black dress and heels,” Yugao suggests.

“Show up at his house in  _ nothing _ ,” Anko adds, and the two purple haired kunoichi clink their glasses together in an easy movement.

“Or in nothing but fishnets,” Hoshiko says, which earns her a salute from Anko.

“I’m sure if I did he wouldn’t even notice,” Kurenai says miserably, practically pouting into her cocktail glass. “I need more alcohol.”

“ _ I’d _ notice,” Hoshiko says helpfully, because she’s never bothered to hide her orientation with Konoha’s population.

“I’m almost desperate enough for that,” Kurenai admits.

“ _ Ouch _ ,” The blonde hisses. “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I’m not getting any either.”

“There’s always Genma,” Yugao says into her beer. Anko cackles.

“Been there, done that, didn’t bother to pick up a t-shirt,” Hoshiko says, causing her fellow kunoichi to burst into laughter and more cackling. “My team got cleared for our first C-Rank and if I’m not careful I’m going to end up hate-fucking Hatake while we’re gone.”

“If you do, report back on the size of his penis,” Anko says shamelessly. Hoshiko rolls her eyes.

“Waaaaaaiiittt,” Kurenai says, suddenly sounding drunk. “Howw woul’ you fuck Kakashi on a C-Rank?”

“Hokage-sama’s sending him with us ‘cause of Sasu-chan, and I might not be able to help myself in the wilderness,” Hoshiko sighs.

“You’re going to traumatize your genin,” Yugao predicts, hailing down a bartender for another round.

“It would be worth it for a dick,” Hoshiko says somberly, earning an ‘amen’ from Kurenai, half-mumbled into her glass. “I hate him and I’m sure he hates me but he’s  _ pretty _ and he has to know what to do with his appendages with all that porn he reads.”

“I’ll string him up if he doesn’t,” Anko promises. “Just for you.”

“Thanks, Anko-chan,” Hoshiko sighs, and downs the rest of her beer.

“I just want to sit on Asuma’s  _ faaaaccceee _ ,” Kurenai says after a moment.

“Time to cut her off,” Anko smirks.

“Time to take her home,” Yugao shakes her head. “Come on, Kure-chan, let’s get you home and into bed.”

“I wanna be in  _ Asuma _ ’s bed,” Kurenai says, but lets Yugao help her up and out of the bar.

“Guess I should head home too,” Hoshiko tosses bills on the tables.

“Have fun with your brats and  _ Ka-ka-shi _ ,” Anko teases, but the blonde just flips her off.

“At least I’m going on a mission, Anko-chan!”

“Bring me back some dango!”

Hoshiko just laughs.

* * *

 

o8:  **_mission prep_ **

“Meet at the gates in one hour,” She tells her genin, who nod in acknowledgment and race off in three separate decorations. “Hatake-san.”

“Mmm?” The jounin looks at her lazily, eye-smiling at her.

“If you’re even five minutes late we’re leaving without you,” She says, already forming hand seals to teleport back to her apartment.

“Hai,  _ taicho _ ,” Hatake says faux-politely, and then she’s standing in her living room.

She’s got a bag packed - Hoshiko’s  _ always _ had at least three mission bags packed at all times - so she drags it out from in the dresser in the living room and drags it into her bedroom, shoving extra weapons and supplies into the outer pockets. 

Her final stop is her vanity, a luxury she’d never allowed herself in her previous life. From one of the drawers she pulls several long, silver chains with silver star charms interspersed along the chain lengths.

Hoshiko sits herself down in front of her vanity, taking careful care as she braids each chain into her ponytail. The end result is a long, braided section of hair that stops just above her butt, the chains glinting softly in her hair. At the very bottom of the braid, she attaches a flat, hand-sized silver star that glints as it lays against her skin.

Standing up from her vanity, she detours to her closet to pull out her mission clothes: fishnet stockings under black skin-tight short-shorts, green ninja sandals, and a halter emerald green crop top under her standard green Konoha flak jacket. Her look’s completed with her hitai-ate hanging around her neck, black and silver, and several rings she pulls out of jewelry boxes, green and silver across eight fingers, made of the same metal as her star charms.

Her final preparation before heading out to her team is to stare in the mirror and cancel the minor henge on her face. Her form wavers in the mirror, and then stills: her tattoo’s clearly visible on the corner of her left eye, emerald green and dripping green and black trails halfway down her cheek. It’s a reminder, a promise to her old self, and the reason for her ninja nickname: Gurīnsutā, aka Green Star.

Hoshiko stares a little longer in the mirror, then whirls around, her star chains clinking softly. She grabs her pack off her bed and exits her apartment, making a brief prayer to whatever kami is listening that she and her team make it back in one piece.

_**~tbc** _


	3. demon brothers, row your boat, chakra exhaustion, & arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wave Country pt 1.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again all.
> 
> Work has been crazy, but I have a mini vacation ahead of me, so expect a few more chapters before next Tuesday.
> 
> Hoshiko may seem a little overpowered for a while, but she does still have her powers from her own world (brownie points for anyone who can guess what they are) as well as her ninja skills. She’ll struggle though, this won’t be smooth sailing forever.
> 
> Enjoy.

o9:  **_demon brothers_ **

Four hours into their trip to Wave Country, Hoshiko notices the puddle. She darts her eyes over Hatake, who gives her a crinkling little eye-smile, and an almost imperceptible nod. 

Two steps past the puddle and it vibrates, shadows leaping from within.  _ Genjutsu _ . Hoshiko performs a flawless substitution, Hatake one step behind her, and then their chakra is cloaked as they hide in the trees, and sit back to watch her students kick ass.

Naruto jumps back, putting Tazuna behind him as he pulls spools of wire out of his pockets, shadow clones already weaving the wire in traps around them. Sakura leaps towards the missing-nin, brand-new katana unsheathing smoothly from her back. Sasuke’s right behind her, engaging one of the enemy nin in a flurry of taijutsu as Sakura cuts through their chain with her katana, ducking under a punch and kicking him in the ribs.

“Forget the kids!” Sasuke’s opponent snarls, and that’s enough for Hoshiko.

She steps into a shunshin, blurring into place besides the one with the glove on his right hand, directing chakra to her fingers and then into her rings, punching him directly in the face. Her chakra vibrates in her rings as soon as they make skin contact, sending him unconscious even before he slams into a tree.

Hoshiko whirls around but Hatake’s already there, eye-smiling, other half of Kirigakure’s Demon Brothers dangling from his fist, his half of the glove-chain weapon on the ground.

“Gurīnsutā,” He whispers, and Hoshiko smiles.

“Let’s have a little chat, shall we?”

* * *

1o:  **_row, row, row your boat_ **

“Hey sensei, sensei,” Naruto stage-whispers, his voice loud in the silence of the ocean, accompanied only by the sound the the rower’s oars in the water and the water lapping against the boat. “That was totally awesome how you punched that guy unconscious!”

“How did you do that, sensei?” Sakura asks. “I felt you direct chakra into your fingers, but you didn’t use your super-strength.”

Hatake, nose buried in his smut, is eye-smiling.  _ Again _ . Hoshiko sighs and weaves her fingers together, casting a stronger genjutsu over the boat that will hide their voices and blur their forms in the fog.

Carefully, she pulls a ring off her left pointer finger; it’s emerald green with a band of black in the middle, a silver star etched onto the surface. She passes it to Sasuke, who’s been trying to look like he’s not interested; the Uchiha cradles it carefully, running his fingers over the surface.

“It’s made of a chakra-conductive metal,” She tells her genin, flashing her other rings at them. “They all are. By inserting chakra into certain ones or certain chakra into all of them, I can do all sorts of things. A little chakra and some blood and this one-“ She touches the one on her right pinky finger, heavy and black. “-can call my summons in case of emergency.”

“Cool,” Naruto and Sakura say in unison. Sasuke runs his fingers over her ring one last time before passing it back.

“If you guys are interested, we can play around with chakra-conductive metals when we get back, see if anything catches your interest,” Hoshiko promises her genin, who all look intrigued.

“Maaa, I’ve never heard of such a thing before,” Hatake says, flipping a page in his book.

Hoshiko schools her expression and looks out over the ocean. “It’s something from back home,” She says softly, unable to keep her mind off loud laughter and piles of dishes in the sink, frosting on her cheek.

“Back home?” Sakura asks, visibly interested . All three of her genin know she’s not from Konoha, but Hoshiko doesn’t talk about home -  it’s too painful .

“Not today, Sakura-chan,” Hoshiko says, and then there’s only the sound of the ocean.

* * *

 

11:  **_chakra exhaustion_ **

Hoshiko watches the hunter-nin disappear with Zabuza and frowns, the clogs in her head already turning away. As she turns to face her genin, a little shaken but victorious in their triumph against some of Zabuza’s clones, she sighs when she catches sight of Kakashi (and  _ that _ had happened sometime during their fight, the copy nin going from  _ Hatake _ to  _ Kakashi _ in her mind) slumping to the ground.

“Kakashi-san!” Naruto yelps.

“He’s fine, Naru-kun,” Hoshiko says, squatting to poke Kakashi in the cheek. He doesn’t move. “He’s just a baka.”

“...chakra exhaustion, sensei?” Sakura guesses, and the blonde smiles.

“Two gold stars, Sakura,” She says, picking Kakashi up and slinging him over her shoulder in an easy motion that has even Sasuke looking impressed. “Tazuna-san, I hope your house is nearby, because I’m not looking forward to protecting both this baka, you, and my students all by myself.”

“It’s just over twenty minutes to my house,” The bridge-builder says, bottle of sake nowhere to be found.

“Excellent,” She says. “Sasuke, take point. You’ve got the best taijutsu at the moment, so don’t leave Tazuna’s side no matter what until we’re safely secured at his house. Sakura, this would be a good chance to practice your sensing.”

“Yes, sensei,” They chorus.

“What about me, sensei?” Naruto asks, eyes firm.

“Send some clones to scout.  _ Incognito _ , Naruto,” She warns him.

“Yes, sensei!” A few hand seals later and several Narutos are running off into the trees ahead of them.

“Show us the way then, Tazuna-san,” She says; and then they’re off again.

* * *

 

12:  **_arrival_ **

Hoshiko leaves Tazuna to his reunion with his family and sets her genin off to their tasks. Naruto, almost his whole collection of supplies in tow, is assigned to set traps and make a perimeter around the house, Sakura with him to sketch a diagram for the whole household to memorize. Sasuke, everyone’s packs in tow, is sent upstairs to ‘make camp’ in the two guest rooms they’ve been granted use of.

Hoshiko drops Kakashi into one of the chairs in the kitchen, politely ignoring Inari’s curious yet hostile gaze on her. Directing green medical chakra to her rings, she hovers her left hand over his chest and sighs. He’s unlikely to be up for another day at least, and Hoshiko needs to prepare her kids.

Sasuke, smart little bugger that he is, has set Kakashi and Hoshiko’s room up first. He helps her get the older jounin into bed, placing Kakashi’s flak jacket and weapons pouches on the dresser next to his bed.

“Go set up the other room and then collect your teammates,” Hoshiko tells him. “We need to plan.”

“Zabuza’s not dead, is he,” The dark-haired boy mutters, and Hoshiko pats his head.

“We’ve got some time. Go on,” She says, and watches him disappear down the hall.

The blonde strips down, setting her dirty clothes with some of Kakashi’s in a wicker hamper. She pulls on long, loose gray ninja pants that almost remind her of sweats ( _ kami _ , she misses sweatpants) and a black long-sleeve sweater because it’s approaching evening  and oh, the cold still hurts .

A bite on her thumb and some hand seals and Kenkō is standing in front of her, tail swishing back and forth.

“Hoshiko-san,” He says, bowing his head. “How may I be of assistance?”

“My baka comrade is suffering from chakra exhaustion,” The jounin says, reaching to scratch behind one of his ears. “Would you watch over him for me, and lend your assistance if it’s needed?”

“Of course,” He butts her hand with his head, and then pads over to lay in front of the bed, tail swishing.

Hoshiko smiles and heads out to find her genin, making a brief stop to let Tazuna and Tsunami know of the big leopard keeping vigil in their house.

(Their faces are priceless)

~ **_tbc_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos feed the plot bunnies. Every piece of support is amazing, you guys.
> 
> Until next time.


	4. preparations, chains, & awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wave mission pt 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back again. Enjoy.

13:  **_preparations_ **

Her little genin are stern-faced but eager to prove themselves in the wake of Hoshiko’s revelation about Zabuza, and she is infinitely proud of them.

“Okay,” She says. “We’re going to get a lot of training in this next week, but make sure not to push yourselves too far. You’ll need to be rested for our upcoming battle.”

Her genin nod solemnly.

“Sakura…” She bites down on her thumb again. Another summoning and Hayai and Jinsoku are standing in front of her, teeth flashing. “Run.”

The kunoichi takes off into the forest, the cheetah twins on her heels. Sasuke and Naruto exchange weary glances.

Hoshiko eyes her two male students for a moment, contemplating. They could both use some chakra control fine-tuning, so she sets Sasuke to tree-walking with a promise for something “more interesting” if he gets all the exercises she gives him down. 

Her dark-haired student taken care of, Hoshiko turns to Naruto with a seemingly innocent smile on her face. The jinchuuriki gulps.

“Come at me, Naruto.”

By the end of the day, all three of her genin are dirty and tired and scowling into their soup. Hoshiko’s still smiling, ignoring the glances of Tazuna’s family. At this point, you’d think her students would be weary of extra training.

Oh well, more amusement for her.

* * *

 

14:  **_chains_ **

Sasuke slinks into her and Kakashi’s room as she’s not so patiently attempting to detach her star chains from her hair.

The Uchiha watches her for a long moment and Hoshiko waits, knowing to let him come to her. 

As she’s fighting with a particularly bad knot, he’s suddenly there, hands gently untangling the knot. Hoshiko drops her hands, folding them in her lap, and watches him in the mirror mounted on the wall.

Sasuke has a perplexed but focused expression on his face, all his attention focused on her hair as his fingers weave through the strands, slowly but painlessly detaching her chains. He’s removed one, carefully laying it on a nearby dresser, and is halfway through a second when he speaks.

“What are they for?”

“Mmm...they’re made of the same metal as my rings,” She says. The star connected to the bottom of the braid is swaying gently against her back, and that and Sasuke’s fingers in her hair are soothing. “Chakra conductive. Add chakra and the chains become almost unbreakable. The stars can become shuriken if I absolutely need them, add some chakra and pull and they come off. After the fight, some chakra will meld them back together.”

Sasuke’s silent again, laying the second chain on the dresser. Three more to go. “I think…” He says slowly. “I remember doing something similar for my kaa-san.”

The jonin squeezes her eyes shut and wills herself not to cry: her student needs her to be strong right now. “Then I’m honored, Sasuke.”

They don’t say another word until after he’s done, Sasuke watching carefully as Hoshiko folds them up and stores them just so in a wooden box, hair spilling over her shoulders.

“Sensei?”

“Yes?” She asks as she pulls her hair up in a messy bun.

“I...may I help put them in tomorrow?”

Her heart squeezes, and Hoshiko offers him a small smile. “Of course. After breakfast, then.”

“Aa,” He says, and slinks out the door. Hoshiko sighs as she climbs into bed, heart full of a thousand emotions and only hoping she’s doing okay in her part to raise her students.

* * *

15:  **_awake_ **

Hoshiko sends Sasuke and Sakura to guard Tsunami at the market the next morning, chains jangling from Sasuke’s first attempt at braiding her hair. She sends Naruto off to run the perimeter of the town with Hayai and Jinsoku, and tells the cheetahs to run him ragged until he’s got  _ just _ enough chakra to attempt tree-walking.

She helps clean up after breakfast, ignoring Inari again (still  _ staring _ and slowly getting on her genin’s nerves), summons Arashi and Dāku to guard Tazuna at the bridge with a shadow clone until Sasuke and Sakura return, and heads back upstairs.

Kakashi’s awake when she steps inside their room, and she smiles.

“Chakra exhaustion’s a bitch, huh?” She says, and Kakashi huffs quietly.

“Zabuza’s-“

“Not dead, I know, we’re on it,” She says.

Kakashi stares at her. “Your chains are loose.”

“Sasuke’s practicing,” She says. “No discouraging him. How are you feeling?”

“Ready to get out of this bed. ...Hungry,” He admits.

“Okay, I’ll go get some leftovers,” Hoshiko brushes her braid over her shoulder. “Come downstairs when you’re ready, and you  _ better use that crutch,  _ Kakashi.”

“Oh, it’s  _ Kakashi _ now?” He says, eye-smiling.

“Don’t make me punch you,” Hoshiko huffs, spinning on her heel to leave the room. “And you better not bring your porn with you!”

“Darn,” He says, teasing, and Hoshiko smirks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So starts Sasuke’s journey. Cough cough.


	5. demon, conversation, aftermath, & departure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wave mission finale.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow okay, hello again everyone, and sorry for the wait.
> 
> Life has been...absolutely crazy. Finding time to write new chapters for my other fics is practically impossible at this point, but I can drop a few chapters of this here and there.
> 
> The Wave confrontation is a little rushed...but even that serves a purpose you’ll all see, eventually.
> 
> There’s a little more about Hoshiko here and there...I love her dearly and I’m E X C I T E D every time I get to reveal more about her.
> 
> Enjoy, guys.

**16: _demon in the hidden mist_**

It all happens so fast. The five of them show up to guard Tazuna for that day’s bridge work, and the fog is unnaturally thick.

She gives Sasuke a little nod, and flicks her head just a little. Her genin swarm Tazuna, weapons exchanging hands as Sakura’s hands fly through seals, a little genjutsu Kakashi and Hoshiko had hammered on her until the pinkette had perfected it blurring their forms.

“I’ll take the accomplice,” She tells Kakashi, offering up a fist. He rolls her eyes, bumps his own against hers, and then they’re off.

The accomplice - Haku - is a kekkai genkai user, able to use Ice Release. Hoshiko feels her lips curve up into a smirk when he surrounds her with ice mirrors, attempting to cut her off from her team.

“I’m probably the worst opponent you could’ve gone up against,” She tells him, and rocks forward.

Her rings crash against the ice and then it’s breaking underneath the force of her un-enhanced strength. The whole bridge stops and  _ stares _ as she bursts through the mirror, hands flying through seals as she runs up and over the mirror dome, ice shattering beneath her feet.

“My ice has never broke before,” Haku says, observing her carefully as they stand opposite each other, broken ice scattered around their feet.

“Never say never,” Hoshiko says, one eye on Kakashi for a moment. Her chains chime in the light breeze, and then she’s shooting forward to meet Haku’s blows.

What follows is a quick but deadly taijutsu battle, blow exchanged for blow, senbon and kunai knocked aside easily. She gets a lucky shot five minutes in, knocks off his mask and sends lightning chakra to her rings that paralyzes him and sends him clashing to the ground.

Haku stares up at her, eyes set. Hoshiko has made kills before -  so many kills - that it’s nothing to pull out a kunai and give him a swift death, straight to the heart.

Kakashi sticks a chidori-covered hand through Zabuza’s chest. They lay their bodies next to each other on the bridge, and all is silent. Hoshiko can feel Naruto staring at them, betrayed. She still hasn’t quite got it through his thick skull that not everyone can be saved.

That has to wait until later, however.

“Well, well, he was useless in the end,” Gato’s voice is slimy, dripping. Hoshiko can’t quite stand it. “I wasn’t planning on paying him anyway, so it’s no skin off my back.”

She can feel her genin’s simmering rage. The blonde weaves her hands through hand seals, and sends her tigers to take over guard duty.

Kakashi at her side and genin behind her, she leaps into the fray once more.

* * *

 

17:  **_a conversation_ **

Sasuke has unlocked the Sharingan.

Hoshiko gives him a very basic exam in the privacy of Tazuna’s home, ignoring the sounds of celebration from the entirety of the town. Sakura and Naruto are gone, Arashi by their side, to go through Gato’s mansion and salvage it for anything useful. Hard labor disguised as a ‘very important’ mission, but it leaves her and the Sharingan users alone.

“Very mild chakra exhaustion,” She pronounces. “Sasuke, I know you’re excited about your eyes, but promise me you’ll pace yourself. I don’t want you going blind.”

Sasuke is quiet, contemplative. Hoshiko’s read his file backwards and forwards a thousand times so  _ she knows _ . She puts one hand on his shoulder and tilts his head up, staring into his onyx orbs with a gentle smile.

“You’ll get your justice,” She says, using the word purposefully. Sasuke nods slowly, and she sends him off to go get some supplies from the market; a distraction and a budgeting lesson all in one.

Kakashi is quiet, waiting. His porn is nowhere to be seen, and his eye is trained on her as she blows out air, frustrated.

“More speed training with Gai, I think,” She says. “Genjutsu with Kurenai, Sharingan training with you...I was gonna start putting them on elemental ninjutsu, and I wanted Yugao to lecture about sensoring…”

“One thing at a time,” Kakashi says. “And don’t split them up.”

That’s...that’s a thought. The chunin exams are a little over two months away, and the elders (damn them) will insist on Sasuke participating. Hoshiko sighs, irritated.

“I need a scroll,” She says. “...and some alcohol.”

Kakashi eye-smiles at her.

* * *

18:  **_aftermath_ **

They’ve all agreed to continue protecting Tazuna until the bridge is finished, so after a small ceremony for Zabuza and Haku (burning their bodies and burying  _ Kubikiribōchō _ with their ashes) Hoshiko rounds up her genin and puts them under Tazuna’s direction.

With Kakashi’s ninken and her cats setting up a perimeter, the two jonin set to work. Hoshiko amazes Tazuna’s workers by picking up large stacks of wood and other materials without breaking a sweat (or chakra, as Sasuke says with pride in his sensei during lunch) while Kakashi briefly uses his Sharingan to copy the actions of the bridge workers. 

Hoshiko forbids Sasuke from doing the same with a stern look that promises extra training with Gai and catching Tora solo if he attempts to do so. Sasuke pouts for half a second, and then gets drawn in by Sakura and twenty Narutos of who can hammer in nails the most professionally.

Hoshiko shares an exasperated look with Kakashi, who has somehow become like a second sensei to her genin in the past couple days, and makes a note to buy more vodka.

She’s going to need it.

In the evenings she threatens her genin into helping Tsunami with cooking dinner and other household chores, important lessons they’ll need to know as they grow up. She has to swoop in a couple of times to correct Naruto’s grip on a knife, to stop him from mangling ingredients or Tsunami’s kitchen. 

After that, she herds her students upstairs where she and Kakashi take turns hammering world history, etiquette, and the cultures of the Five Great Nations into their little heads.

Sakura soaks up the knowledge like a sponge, Sasuke is attentive but would obviously rather be learning more taijutsu or a new ninjutsu, and Naruto has to be corralled with the promise of elemental ninjutsu training on the way home, but at least they’re all paying attention: at least they’re  _ learning. _

During their second to last night enjoying Tazuna’s hospitality, Hoshiko pulls out her bingo book and passes it over to Sakura, her male students craning their necks over her shoulders. Sakura gets a bit of a blush, but otherwise doesn’t react, and Hoshiko marvels at how far the young kunoichi has come.

“Hey, hey, sensei,” Naruto says for the fiftieth time that week, finger on the page showing Hoshiko’s entry, the space used for a photograph marked with a question mark. There’s an annotation at the bottom of the page noting her green star tattoo, the only tidbit about her appearance the Hokage has allowed to leak to the other villages. “What’s with your star theme anyways?”

Hoshiko sighs, tapping her lips. “Hoshiko is not the name I was born with. Where I come from, that’s what my birth name means, star. It’s why I chose ‘Hoshiko’,” She tells them. Her genin’s eyes are glued to her form. “Stars are also sort of a...thing amongst my family.” She leans forward to turn the page, revealing Kakashi’s entry.

The copy nin gives her a knowing look as the genin turn on him as one, but doesn’t say anything as her students bombard  _ him _ with questions.

She tells herself she’ll tell them the full story one day, and she manages to mostly believe it. It’s an improvement.

* * *

19:  **_departure_ **

“I’m naming it The Seven Star Bridge,” Tazuna says proudly, and Hoshiko feels a smile flicker on her lips as Sasuke smirks, Sakura grins, and Naruto starts jumping up and down shouting something that ends in his customary “ _ believe it _ !”

“We’re honored, Tazuna-san,” Hoshiko says and, after her students have said goodbye, nudges them down the bridge; they’ve got a long trip in front of them, and a harder challenge waiting back home.

Naruto waits fifteen minutes and until they’re off the bridge before demanding his elemental ninjutsu “reward”; Hoshiko sighs and exchanges look with Kakashi, who pulls three chakra paper slips out of his pocket.

“Channel your chakra into them,” Hoshiko says as her fellow jonin passes them out. “Just a  _ little _ , Naruto, don’t swamp it. Ash means fire, crinkling is lightning, dirt is earth, damp is water, and if splits in two it’s wind.”

Sasuke’s crinkles in his grasp and then turns to ash. Naruto’s splits straight down the middle. Sakura’s turns damp and then crumbles away.

“Lightning, fire, wind, water, and earth,” Hoshiko smiles as her male students gape at Sakura. The pinkette looks pleased. “All the basic elements. We can work with this.”

“Don’t expect huge jutsus right away,” Kakashi says lazily. Hoshiko didn’t even see him pull out his porn. “We don’t want you blowing yourselves up before you’ve even got a handle on your elemental chakra.”

Everyone looks at Naruto in unison. The jinchuuriki pouts, but doesn’t protest.

Mainly because Kakashi’s not  _ wrong _ .

~TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon~. All the support has been mindblowing, really, I’m so happy about it.
> 
> What do you think?


	6. home, reporting, village politics, water walking, nominations, terrified

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team 7 return home. The chuunin exams loom in the distance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaayyyy I’m baaaaack.
> 
> Nice, hefty chapter for you guys (by this fic’s standards, anyways). I couldn’t find a proper place to section off, so here it is.
> 
> THINGS ARE STARTING TO RAMP UP. For anyone who read the other fic in this series, Tatsuya’s debut is not too far off and I am: EXCITED. We also finally earn that Kakashi/OFC relationship tag, so look forward to more of that in the future.
> 
> Enjoy~

2o:  **_home_ **

As soon as they drop out of the tree line, Konoha’s big red front gate plainly visible, Naruto lets out a crow, fist punching the air. “We’re backkk!” He yells, practically dancing around.

“Dobe,” Sasuke sighs, rolling his eyes so hard it’s a wonder his eyes don’t pop out. “Why don’t you say that a little louder, I don’t think the whole village heard you.”

As Naruto inhales, Hoshiko quickly steps between them, separating her two male students and giving them unimpressed looks. “Pull out your identification, kiddos,” She says, doing her best to mimic Kakashi’s infamous drawl (earning giggles from Sakura and a blank stare from the Copy Nin). “We’ve got to check in with the chunin at the front gate, and then report to Hokage-sama.”

Naruto brightens visibly. “We’re gonna see Hokage-jiji?”

“All shinobi must report to Hokage-sama after a mission, especially if there were complications like ours,” Sakura says, practically a textbook answer. Hoshiko will beat that out of her soon enough.

The blonde pulls her dog tags out of her shirt and holds them forward to the chunin manning the front gate - today it’s Kotetsu and Izumo, perhaps the most infamous of all Konoha’s chunin.

“Have fun, Team 7?” Kotetsu asks, wriggling his eyebrows as he taps a chakra-coated finger against first Sakura’s, and then Sasuke’s dog tags.

“We got a bridge named after us!” Naruto yells as he holds his own dog tags out to Izumo. He’s vibrating again, barely able to hold himself still.

The chunin raise their eyebrows and stare at Hoshiko and Kakashi. The Copy Nin just eye-smiles, giving nothing away, and Hoshiko shrugs her shoulders.

“Can’t say anything unless Hokage declassifies our mission,” She says, smiling sweetly and dropping her hands on Naruto’s shoulders.

“You were on a  _ C-Rank _ !” Kotetsu says, jaw dropping in shock.

“First C-Rank curse,” Kakashi hums, and then they’re leaving two dumbfounded chunin behind, their sights set out on the Hokage Tower.

* * *

21:  **_team 7, reporting_ **

Despite Naruto practically bouncing off the walls, Team 7 and Kakashi wait outside the Hokage’s office to give their report.

“Okay kiddos,” Hoshiko says, staring down at her students. “This is going to be your first time giving a proper mission report. Hokage-sama will read the mission scrolls Kakashi and I have finished, and then ask for clarification if he needs any at all.” She pauses, watching as a group of chunin amble out of the office, faces somber. “Do not embellish-“ She stares at Naruto. “-do not give him one word grunt answers-“ Her gaze swaps to Sasuke, who huffs. “-and do not recite like you’re reading out of a textbook.” Sakura looks embarrassed, but nods.

“Most of all, be  _ respectful _ , and do not interrupt anyone else when it’s their turn to talk,” She pats each of her genin’s heads, and then, at the cue of the ANBU disguised as the Hokage’s civilian receptionist, ushers her team into the Hokage’s office, Kakashi a step behind them.

“Ah, Team 7,” Sarutobi-sama’s eyes are twinkling as he idly chews on the end of his pipe. “I’ve heard you had quite the eventful mission.”

Naruto is vibrating  _ again _ . As Hoshiko steps forward to hand over her and Kakashi’s reports, she catches sight of Sasuke and Sakura elbowing Naruto lightly and trying to rein him in.

“There were a few complications, Hokage-sama,” Hoshiko says easily, falling back to stand beside Kakashi. “We ran into Momochi Zabuza and an accomplice of his. It delayed us.”

He knows this, of course - Hoshiko had sent a messenger bird back about the change in mission parameters. This little exchange is mainly for her genin’s benefit.

“I see,” The Hokage unrolls her report, eyes scanning over it. “And he is dead?”

“Yes, his apprentice too.”

His eyes flick up to her, questioning. No doubt he’s wondering why they didn’t turn in the bounty. Hoshiko eyes flicker over to her genin, struggling to stand still and silent, and inclines her head forward a fraction.

Sarutobi-sama eye-smiles, and then continues to read through her and Kakashi’s reports. It’s another five minutes before he rolls them both and sits up, smiling kindly.

“Well, Team 7, it seems you had an eventful time outside the village,” He says patiently, pulling a stamp out of his desk. “I’ll make the change to the mission rank in the archives, and you’ll all receive standard pay for two A-Ranks.”

Sakura’s eyes flicker up to Hoshiko’s. The jonin smiles and nods. “ _ Two _ A-Ranks, Hokage-sama?” She questions, back ramrod straight.

“You and Naruto brought back valuable information from Gato’s mansion, Sakura-chan,” Sarutobi-sama says kindly. “Thank you for going above and beyond for Konohagakure.”

“We did awesome, right Hokage-jiji?” Naruto bursts out, apparently unable to hold back anymore. Hoshiko sighs, and stares at the ceiling in mock despair.

“You did very well, Naruto-kun,” The Hokage says. “Team 7, Kakashi-kun-“

Her kids look thrilled at the honorific being attached to Kakashi’s name. Hoshiko can’t help but smirk.

“-you are dismissed. Fukitsu-chan, stay behind please.”

Naruto looks ready to argue. Sasuke and Sakura practically drag him out the door, Kakashi following with his porn in hand.

Hoshiko’s gonna need to burn his collection one day.

The blonde watches them go, and then turns back around.

“What can I do for you, Hokage-sama?”

* * *

22:  **_village politics_ **

Sarutobi-sama chews lightly on his pipe before setting it down. “You’re doing well with Uchiha-kun, Haruno-chan, and Naruto-kun.”

“They’re good kids,” Hoshiko says, relaxing her stance a bit now that it’s just her and the Hokage (and some ANBU, of course). “They just need someone to sort through their squabbles and put their heads on straight.”

“The Council is still upset that Uchiha-kun wasn’t placed under Kakashi-kun’s care,” Sarutobi-sama says with a heavy sigh. “They’re bickering to try and pull him off Team 7 and into an apprenticeship.”

“I guess it’s a good thing my kids have somehow managed to adopt Kakashi since we left, then,” Hoshiko says, chin high. “They’re starting to consider him to be a second sensei, if that information may help you placate them.”

The Hokage’s eyes twinkle. “It seems like every week, I am newly grateful for whatever caused you to become one of Konohagakure’s citizens.”

Her heart pulls. “I miss my homeland, but Konohagakure is like a second home to me,” She murmurs. “I’m grateful you accepted me into your shinobi ranks, Hokage-sama.”

“We will always have a place for a skilled ninja like you,” Sarutobi-sama says kindly. “The first time I saw you, I admit I wondered if Tsunade-chan had had a daughter she hadn’t told me about.”

“...Hokage-sama...that’s…”

He waves a hand. “Unfortunately, I must turn this conversation to less pleasant topics.” A pause. “The next round of chunin exams are in a month and a half.”

“They’re not  _ ready _ , Hokage-sama, they haven’t even been genin for six months!” Hoshiko finds herself blurting out, before rocking back on her heels. “Forgive me, Hokage-sama.”

“It’s quite alright. I do happen to agree,” He says, picking up his pipe. “The Council, however…”

“Bunch of gossipy senile old hags,” Hoshiko mutters under her breath, and then tries to look innocent. Sarutobi-sama’s eyes twinkle.

“They have been hinting and pushing that Team 7 must participate in the chunin exams,” The Hokage says. “There’s been no official declaration yet, but I fear my hands will be tied when the time comes.”

Hoshiko groans and tugs on the end of her braid, cool metal against her palm grounding her. “I understand, Hokage-sama.”

He smiles at her. “We will do our utmost to keep them safe, Hoshiko-chan. You’re dismissed; go make sure your students are okay.”

She offers him a brilliant smile, and goes to do just that.

* * *

23:  **_water walking_ **

A couple days later Hoshiko gathers her genin by the river in Training Ground Thirty Three. All three of her students are in tank tops and shorts, just like she instructed. 

Hoshiko can’t help her smirk as she claps her hands together. “Okay my cute little genin! You’ve all mastered - well, mastered for  _ genin _ , anyway - the art of tree walking, so today we’re going to move onto the next step.”

Sakura’s eyes go wide. “Sensei, you’re teaching us how to water-walk?”

“That sounds cool, believe it!” Naruto bursts, jumping up and down.

“Aa…” Sasuke says, eyes lighting up.

“Alright, the principal is the same as tree-walking, but you have to make sure you’re compensating for how the water moves,” She says, stepping onto the river and walking across it. “You guys aren’t going to get this in a couple hours or even a couple days. It’ll take work, but you’ll get there.”

“Alright, here goes!” Naruto yells, charging onto the river-

-where he immediately falls in. Sasuke, one step behind him, has the most amusing look on his face  _ ever _ as he drops down into the water, and Hoshiko can’t help but cackle, her stress momentarily washed away by her genin’s antics.

* * *

24:  **_nominations_ **

Several weeks after Hoshiko and her team return home from the Wave mission, the Hokage calls all the jonin-sensei to the missions office.

There’s a sinking feeling in her stomach, but the blonde catches up with Kurenai and Asuma (who are doing their best not to look like they just came from a date) as they file into the missions office.

“Are you okay?” Kurenai asks, red eyes focused on her and soft, worried. 

“No,” The blonde mutters, falling in line next to a jonin she’s seen around a few times, but doesn’t know his name. “I am not here of my own volition.”

Asuma winces, plucking his cigarette out of his mouth, but whether that’s because of her insinuation against the Council or because Gai has magically appeared on his free side, teeth shining and proclaiming about the talented youth of the village, well, she’s not sure.

Finally, all the jonin-sensei have arrived, and the Hokage is smiling at them, pipe between his lips. Fucking narcotics, the entirety of the Sarutobi clan. Ridiculous.

“As I’m sure most of you know,” Sarutobi-sama says, eyes twinkling. “The next chunin exams will be held here, under our jurisdiction. I have gathered all of you here today to ask whether you will nominate your team for the exams or not. We’ll go down the line, so please be patient and wait your turn.”

Hoshiko’s jaw tightens, and her back straightens as she waits, teeth practically grinding together. She’d never realized how many genin teams were running around Konoha until all their senseis were jammed into one room.

Finally, all eyes turn to her: she’s got the powerhouse rookie team and everyone knows it.

“Fukitsu-chan?” Hokage-sama asks, eyes unreadable as they meet hers.

She inhales.

“I, Fukitsu Hoshiko, as sensei of Genin Team 7, nominate my team for the chunin exams.”

There’s a sudden surge of whispers of surprise and excitement, and Hoshiko does her best to ignore them, to keep her face from twisting into a scowl.

Hokage-sama takes pity on her and turns to look at Kurenai. The genjutsu mistress peeks at Hoshiko and then clears her throat, nominating her team - so do Asuma and Gai.

“Alright,” Kurenai says, dragging Hoshiko out the door once they’re dismissed. “Dinner and drinks, me you and the girls, tonight at eight.”

Hoshiko just squeezes her hand, doing her best to keep her shit together.

This is all so unfair.

* * *

25:  **_terrified_ ** __

Kakashi shows up at her apartment one hour after the chunin exam nominations.

Hoshiko sighs, frustrated, when she sees him, but lets him in. He helps her make dinner in her kitchen - simple stir fry. He hands her ingredients and cooks the rice - and they don’t say a word until they’re sitting on her couch.

“I’m scared out of my goddamn mind,” She says, and carefully doesn’t look his way so he can pull down his mask and eat.

“They’ll make it through,” Kakashi murmurs. “They’re tough for rookies. You’ve made sure they’ll survive.”

Hoshiko swallows. “They’re - I’ve had ‘em for four, almost five months. They’re like my kids and I’m  _ terrified _ .”

There’s a clatter of Kakashi’s bowl and then his fingertips against her cheek. The blonde squeezes her eyes shut and leans into his hand.

“Tell me,” He says simply. Hoshiko inhales. Her heart hurts. This moment, it almost feels like…

“We’re doing kunoichi stuff this week.” He knows that. Nin all around the village are joking about how Team Seven’s suddenly got a second sensei. “Sakura knows most of what we’re covering, Naruto is being a teenage boy about the whole thing…”

“And Sasuke?” Kakashi’s asks, voice low. Hoshiko swallows.

“Every day Sasuke looks like he’s discovering something new about himself,” She whispers into the silent apartment. “And I’m happy,  _ of course I’m happy _ , and I’m so proud of him, but I’m terrified for him because  _ no one’s gonna understand _ and the fucking Council is-“

Kakashi tips her head up and kisses her. Sparks erupt inside her and she grabs onto his vest, hauls him closer, and kisses him with everything she’s got.

When they part, Kakashi’s fingers stroke over her cheek. “So we’ll be there for him,” He says. “And Sakura and Naruto will fight anyone for him. We’ll give him all the safety he needs.”

Hoshiko swallows, says okay, and opens her eyes.

Kakashi is smiling at her. It is pretty.  _ He _ is pretty.

She definitely has a type. She’s totally gonna miss drinks with the girls.

Hoshiko finds she doesn’t exactly mind.

~TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i love baby!suke the END
> 
> Comments and kudos feed my soul. See you guys in the next chapter!


	7. strengths, routine, earrings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little dash of pre-exams mayhem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO MY FRIENDS, I’VE RETURNED.
> 
> We’re reaching the end of what I’ve got prewritten and I. Am Nervous. Because I am STRUGGLING with writing the third exam. So. We’ll see what happens.
> 
> Enjoy, you guys~

26:  **_strengths_ **

Hoshiko waits until they’ve finished their laps, her lips pressed together as her three little genin line up in front of her, Sasuke in the middle and Sakura looking at her worriedly.

“In a little under a month, you guys will take part in the chunin exams held here in Konoha,” She says as emotionlessly as possible.

Naruto brightens in excitement, but it quickly fades when he reads the tension in the rest of his team. “Sensei…?”

“The Council pushed you into it,” Sasuke states flatly from beneath his bangs. His hair’s starting to get long, and she wonders… “Because of me.”

“Yes,” Hoshiko sighs. “I think you’re ready in terms of skill, but you’re rookies. I’d prefer it if you had more mission experience, but that’s not an option.”

“What’s the plan, sensei?” Sakura asks, like she’s waiting for orders. Hoshiko’s lips twist before she can help it.

“We’re going to buckle down on your strengths,” The jonin responds, sweeping her unbraided hair over her shoulder. “Team training will remain mostly the same in the morning, 8:30am to 11am, but I’m going to put you through your paces like this is a jonin exam. Lunch from 11:30 to 12:30. Genjutsu, sensing, and kenjutsu for Sakura. Report to Yugao from 1pm to 4pm every day, and then Kakashi from 4:30pm to 7:30pm at after that.”

“Yes sensei,” The pinkette nods.

“Speed, ninjutsu, and Sharingan for Sasuke,” Hoshiko smiles at the Uchiha, who’s still a little stone-faced. “I want you with Team Gai every morning before team training, 5am.”

Sakura and Naruto flinch in sympathy.

“You’re with Kakashi for block A in the afternoons, and then you come find me after that until 7:30pm,” She tells him.

“Yes, Hoshiko-sensei,” Sasuke says, tone firm. Hoshiko reaches forward and ruffles his hair.

“Finally, Naruto.” Her most exuberant genin beams at her. “Taijutsu, trapmaking, and battle tactics. You’re with me in block A, and Anko for block B.”

“We’ll kick their butts, sensei, believe it!” Naruto crows, fist in the air, and Hoshiko smiles.

“I have no doubt about it.”

* * *

 

27:  **_routines_ **

And so begins the routine for the next month of her team’s life.

She wakes every morning to either find herself in Kakashi’s bed or to Kakashi in her bed. They don’t cuddle, but they manage what Anko calls a “sickeningly domestic” routine of breakfast, coffee, and lesson plans, usually swarmed by her cats or his dogs or sometimes even both.

After that, she heads to training ground thirty-three at 8:15 every morning to find Sakura usually already there, head buried in a genjutsu scroll and muttering to herself. Naruto shows up at 8:29 with several tactics scrolls he usually dives into during lunch break, and Sasuke shows up at 8:35 on the dot every day because “Gai-sensei doesn’t know when to  _ quit _ ”, looking slightly haggard but no less determined.

She starts them off in team tactics and strategy, makes them reason their way through mission scenarios that have actually happened (at least the ones that aren’t redacted to Kiri and back). Then she makes them run laps, do push-ups and sit-ups, sprints across the training ground, sprints over water and up in the trees.

Then they get serious. She has them come at her as a team, try to land a hit on her. They’re at a thirty percent average and climbing fast. And if  _ that’s _ not enough, she pits them against each other, two on one until the clock hits 11:30 and they’re sweating, looking ready to collapse but still determined.

Hoshiko leaves them to their bentos and scrolls (Sasuke’s usually got his head buried in old Uchiha Sharingan scrolls or  _ other _ scrolls genjutsu’d to  _ look _ like old Uchiha Sharingan scrolls) in the training ground and goes off to find someone to eat lunch with, usually Anko but occasionally Kurenai or Yugao and sometimes even Kurenai  _ and _ Asuma, and, on one memorable occasion, Kakashi, Gai, and Shiranui Genma.

By the time she returns to Training Ground Thirty-Three Sasuke and Sakura have usually cleared out and Naruto, fully recovered thanks to the Kyuubi, is waiting for her, eyes brimming with determination.

Maito Gai might be Konohagakure’s taijutsu master but Fukitsu  _ Hoshiko _ is becoming known as Konohagakure’s taijutsu  _ mistress _ . When chakra enhanced, her strength can be even more powerful than that of Senju Tsunade, and she can take a beating and shrug it off like it’s nothing. Kakashi’s referred to her as a “speedy little demon”, and he’s not wrong.

So, every day, for three hours, Hoshiko puts Naruto through the wringer, because he can take it. He’ll never quite get the chakra strength enhancement down like Sakura one day will, so she teaches him how to take a hit, how to be defensive, and how to break things  _ without _ chakra as best she can. She teaches him taijutsu move after taijutsu move, making him answer tactics questions all the while. And, after he’s starting to get winded, she spars him for the last half hour, one-on-one.

She sends him off at 4pm sharp every day with new tactics scrolls and takes the thirty minute break to grab a snack (usually dango or senbei but also occasionally gyoza or ramen when she wants a second lunch) and finds a table to hunch over and scribble plans and battle scenarios and tactics ideas and  _ so much else _ in.

And then comes her evenings with Sasuke.

* * *

 

28:  **_earrings_ **

On the first day Sasuke finds her at a tiny ramen shop, less known than Ichiraku’s and (in Hoshiko’s humble opinion) serving better quality ramen. He slides into the seat across from her and waits as she finishes her bowl, still scribbling in a very large scroll that takes up half the table.

“We’re going to be here a while, Sasuke, so feel free to order something,” She eventually says, glancing up. “They’ve got tomato ramen here.”

Sasuke’s eyes light up, and he (dignifiedly) scrambles towards where the owner is behind the counter.

They’re the only ones in the shop, so Hoshiko discreetly twists her fingers in a few hand seals below the table, casting a genjutsu over the door of the shop that will actively discourage others from coming in. She’s no genjutsu master, but the few she has in her arsenal are  _ powerful _ things, practiced over and over until she has complete mastery of them. No one will bother them here.

That done, she slips a hand into her weapons pouch, withdrawing a small velvet box and setting it on the table in front of Sasuke’s chair.

Her student comes back with a matcha latte in one hand, excited about the prospect of tomato ramen, so it takes him a second to notice the box.

“Sensei?” He asks, eyebrows furrowing together as he stares at it, setting his latte down in a free spot on the table.

“Open it, Sasuke,” Hoshiko says, shoving hair behind her ears and focusing on finishing this last thought about ‘plan: Naruto Tank’ so she can roll up the scroll.

Her student pokes the box in such an adorable manner that Hoshiko has a hard time holding back her laughter, dipping her head down and packing away her stuff.

The soft noise the box makes when Sasuke opens it is clearly audible, as is the involuntary inhale he makes. Hoshiko smiles, looking up at her student to see a shocked look on his face.

“Happy early birthday, Sasuke,” She says. “If you want, we can go get your ears pierced today.”

“Sensei…” The Uchiha protests, staring down at the flat black studs made of the same chakra conductive metal that Hoshiko loves so much. “This is...I  _ can’t _ …”

He’s visibly struggling between his heart and his clan’s traditional ways, so Hoshiko extends a hand to gently place on his wrist, eyes soft and warm when he meets her gaze, his dark orbs worried and wanting at the same time.

“You  _ can _ , Sasuke,” She says. “No one in this village can tell you what to wear or who to love or who to be. If they try, I’ll punch them into the Hokage Mountain, and then Kakashi will Chidori them into oblivion.”

Sasuke ducks his head and swallows. “...thank you, sensei,” He finally says, voice wobbly and completely unlike the facade he hides behind. It isn’t that her student is emotionless, it’s that he’s  _ too _ emotional and can’t deal with it.

“So, once you’re finished eating,” She says, picking up her chopsticks and diving back into the bottom of her bowl. “We’ll go get those cute little ears of yours pierced.”

Sasuke stares at her and then nods, closing and holding the velvet box tightly like it’s one of the most precious things in the world.

When he shows up to team training the next day, ears pierced with the studs on, jaw set firmly like he’s daring Sakura and Naruto to say something, Hoshiko can’t help but smile.

Her smile grows wider when all her other two students do is tell him they look good before turning to Hoshiko in unison, ready and eager for more training.

_**-TBC** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think?


	8. tea, first exam, second exam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hoshiko the Overprotective Mom TM.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU GUYS...CHUNIN EXAMS. HERE WE GO.
> 
> Uuuughhgh I’m so nervous guys. These parts were hard to do and were severely condensed since it’s all from Hoshiko’s POV and she’s not physically there for the first two sections of the exams.
> 
> Anyway, have more babysuke flourishing and family-Team-Seven and CUTENESS and. Also the exams. Yeah.
> 
> TATSUYA IS INBOUND YOU GUYS IM SO EXCITED I-

29:  **_tea_ **

“Sensei,” Sakura says two days before the exam, her eyes green steel and her body tense. “We met...we met foreign genin who are going to be taking the Exams today.”

Hoshiko hums in thought, turning to her kitchen to make tea. She’d wondered why, when she had returned home from dinner with her fellow jonin sensei, she had found her genin sitting on her doorstep, waiting for her to return.

“Tell me about it,” She says softly, pulling four tea packets out of a drawer; green tea for Sakura and Sasuke, and a sweet, citrusy-orange blend she’d made herself for her and Naruto.

“They were from Suna,” Sasuke says. Her dark-haired student is looking more and more androgynous these days with his earrings, growing hair, and the soft shirts and pants cut in a non-traditional way, meant hide his sharp angles and flat chest until he comes to a decision about it all. About what he wants. “They were…”

“Not friendly,” Naruto growls, arms folded across his chest. “They were bullying Konohamaru.”

“The redhead stopped his teammates,” Sakura says, biting at her lip as she settles into a chair at Hoshiko’s kitchen table. “But he was...he felt... _ terrifying _ .”

“I think he might have been like me,” Naruto says quietly. “Sakura said he gave off the same sort of...aura?” He turns his head to look at the pinkette, who nods in confirmation of his words.

A jinchuuriki. That’s a terrifying thought, and a huge breach of conduct, if it’s true. Hoshiko taps her nails on her countertop and makes a mental note to go visit the Hokage tomorrow morning. “Make sure you three stay together as much as possible,” She tells them, pouring boiling water over the bags in four mugs. “I don’t know what Suna’s trying to pull, but you keep each other safe and try to stay out of the way.”

“Yes sensei,” Her students say in unison as Hoshiko sets their tea down in front of them, along with a tin of senbei for the sweets-adverse Sasuke and a plate of freshly-bought dorayaki for the rest of them.

“Maa, I didn’t know the kids were going to be here,” Kakashi says, suddenly appearing in the doorway.

“Kakashi-sensei!” Naruto jumps to his feet, pointing an accusing finger at him. “What are you doing here?”

“They’re  _ dating _ , dobe,” Sasuke says with a roll of his eyes. Hoshiko coughs as Naruto’s jaw drops and Sakura does a double take.

“WHAT!?” The jinchuuriki finally erupts, head swinging between Hoshiko and Kakashi (easily puttering around her kitchen to make his own mug of tea).

“How did you know that?” Sakura asks curiously, head tilted as she looks at Sasuke.

The Uchiha’s cheeks go light pink, but he just shrugs. “A lot of his stuff is here,” He says. “And there’s always dog hair everywhere when I come over for lessons.”

“So smart, Sasu-chan,” Kakashi says almost condescendingly as he comes over with his tea. Hoshiko kicks him in the shin and strikes, lightning fast, yanking down his mask.

There’s a sudden quiet in the kitchen as her three genin  _ stare _ while Kakashi looks at her, betrayed, hands twitching as if to pull his mask back up before flopping back down, giving in.

Hoshiko just smirks and settles back into her chair, sipping at her tea and feeling victorious even as Kakashi shoots her a nigh unreadable look that she knows means  _ we will be talking about this later _ .

She’s looking forward to it. After all, secrets do not make for good trust in a team, and Team 7’s going to need all the trust they can build.

* * *

 

3o:  **_first stage_ **

Kakashi is trailing after her like the lost puppy he is when Hoshiko goes to join the other sensei of the “rookies” in the viewing room for the first exam set up specifically for the jonin of all the teams. 

All the jonin have segregated themselves into village for the most part, and Hoshiko weaves her way through the crowd, a light ‘notice me not’ genjutsu applied to her as she makes a beeline for Kurenai, Gai, and Asuma.

Kurenai raises an eyebrow, curious as Gai booms about ‘MY ETERNAL RIVAL!! HOW YOUTHFUL OF YOU TO CARE ABOUT THIS VILLAGE’S YOUTH!’

“This is new,” The dark-haired kunoichi says as Hoshiko collapses on the couch next to her.

“He’s like a barnacle,” The blonde says as they watch Asuma be inevitably drawn into the madness that is Kakashi and Gai’s relationship. “But he gives good head, so I’m willing to put up with it.”

The genjutsu mistress snorts, and then their eyes are drawn to one of the full-screen tv monitors as they click on, revealing Morino Ibiki doing his best to scare the ever-living shit out of the participants.

“Is that...Sasuke-san?” Kurenai says, blinking when Hoshiko’s students come into view. Sasuke is in his prime today, blurring the line between the traditional two genders, hair tamed and laying across his shoulders in a feminine style of playful layers. His loose but carefully chosen clothing is doing the job too; muted, traditionally unisex blues and grays with just a hint of cinching around his waist. 

The only clues to his identity are Sakura and Naruto, flanking him, and the sewn-on Uchiha emblem patch on his left sleeve. Other than that, everything about Sasuke screams  _ androgynous shinobi with no time for your gender bias _ . Hoshiko’s enjoying the confused, attracted gazes he’s getting from most of the genin participants and even some of the chunin proctors.

Gai immediately bursts into a rant about how the Uchiha has “YOUTHFULLY ACCEPTED HIS BLOOMING YOUTH!” and Hoshiko just laughs. 

Kakashi slumps down next to her, slouching into her space. “You’re enjoying revolutionizing the world too much,” He murmurs, and Hoshiko elbows him playfully.

Then, the exam begins: Sakura has no trouble with any of the questions on the trick exam paper set in front of her, but Hoshiko feels smug when her only female student twists her fingers and casts a simple but effective genjutsu that blurs the paper and makes her answers seem like nonsensical gibberish.

It’s the perfect counter to Yamanaka Ino, sitting behind her and attempting to use her clan jutsu to steal Sakura’s answers. The blonde doesn’t stay in Sakura’s head for too long, blanching and hurrying to find a different target.

Sasuke does not have Sakura’s question-answering ease, but all of Hoshiko’s students are smart in their own ways and she’s been drilling them on mission problem-solving from their very first day. He manages to solve most of the questions on his own, then ducks his head so his bangs cover his Sharingan copying other answers.

Naruto is not a paper ninja, and he will never ever thrive in a classroom, filling questions out without battlefield pressure. He’s made for the front lines, but he bites his lip and hunkers down and does his best to problem solve a couple of the easier questions.

“You’re raising monsters,” Kurenai says in exasperation, and Hoshiko smirks in reply.

Needless to say, her genin make it through the first stage with no problem. 

Not that she’d ever had any doubt.

* * *

 

31:  **_second stage_ **

Team Seven makes it through the second stage in just over two days, which is no surprise to Hoshiko and Kakashi and a big fucking deal to all the other Konoha nin running around the Forest of Death’s guard tower.  _ Apparently _ .

So they make it through in two days - and Umino Iruka goes to greet them before she can, dammit  _ they’re her students _ \- and come into the tower looking a hot mess.

All of Sakura’s hair is fucking gone, Naruto -  _ Naruto!! _ \- is teetering on the edge of chakra exhaustion, and Sasuke’s missing one of his beloved earrings.

Plus, oh you know, the giant hickey from hell on his neck that is one of  _ Orochimaru’s cursed seals _ .

Hoshiko possibly flips her shit.

Okay, she totally, completely, 100% flips her shit.

“What the fuck?” She demands of the first proctor she sees, grabbing _Morino Ibiki_ by his trenchcoat and glaring him down in the middle of the guard tower’s makeshift hospital bay. “What kinda _middle-of-the-week_ ** _shitshow_** are we running here that _Orochimaru of the fucking Sannin_ can just waltz right _the fuck_ into our _chunin exams_?”

“Maa, Hoshiko, don’t beat him into pulp,” Kakashi says, detaching her from Ibiki before she shakes him to death. “We need him, you know?”

Ibiki, to his credit, doesn’t look shaken. “We’re already investigating probable breaches-“

“That doesn’t help my student!” She spits, ready to go a second round, maybe deck him through a couple walls, but Kakashi steers her away, hands on her shoulders as he takes her to their genin.

“ _ Hoshiko-sensei _ ,” Sakura says, and the blonde folds her into a hug, careful not to stab her female student with her star chains.

After a moment she holds out an arm and tugs Naruto in, too. Sasuke’s out cold on a bed, a fuinjutsu seal from Kakashi doing it’s best to contain Orochimaru’s ‘little gift’.

“Are you guys alright?” She asks into what’s left of Sakura’s hair, possibly gripping her students too tight in worry.

To their credit, neither complains, although Naruto peers up at Kakashi.

“Sensei?” He asks.

Kakashi peers down at him.

“I think Orochimaru did something to me, too.”

Hoshiko’s gonna murder someone.

~TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sasuke: Sensei I got a new accessory  
> Sasuke: *points to cursed seal* Isn’t it cool?  
> Hoshiko: *choking on chocolate* What have I told you about taking gifts from strangers
> 
> Comments and kudos feed my soul. See you next chapter!


	9. preliminaries i-v

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prelims.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance for the quality of the fight scenes. Rip.
> 
> So ao3 updated their Rich Text for adding/posting chapters and it’s like. Impossible to scroll on a phone, which is how I write and post, so there will be a change in formatting, but it shouldn’t be too jarring.
> 
> Hopefully you don’t hate me too much after this chapter...enjoy you guys.

32:  **_preliminaries - i_ **

 

Hoshiko fixes up Sakura’s hair and, when Sasuke wakes up, replaces his earrings with tiny black star studs that match her own green ones. He scowls at her, softens when he sees Naruto and Sakura curled up next to him, fast asleep, and puts them in.

 

As it turns out, Orochimaru messed with Naruto’s jinchuuriki seal and there’s nothing Kakashi or any of Konoha’s other so-called fuinjutsu ‘experts’ can do, so they call in the big guns, due to arrive in the lull before the third stage (god, is nobody in this village fucking competent  _ at all _ ?).

 

Then, the fifth day of the second stage closes, and they call all the teams who passed and their jonin-sensei down to a giant room on the first floor that can only mean one thing.

 

Anko’s in her element, smirk wide and terrifying to the genin as she explains that there are still too many contestants so! Preliminaries time! One on one matches to see who gets the  _ honor _ of performing in front of the village.

 

Yakushi Kabuto raises his hand, sweetly says he doesn’t have it in him for a match. Hoshiko eyes him as he leaves, untrusting: there’s something  _ off _ about him.

 

As she turns her gaze back towards Anko, she pauses, stiffening a little. Across the way, on the other balcony, is the Suna team’s sensei. And he looks  _ so much _ like…

 

Her heart clenches and she turns her gaze away, back to Anko and where the giant monitor is rotating through names, faster and faster until -

 

**_Uchiha Sasuke vs Akadō Yoroi_ ** .

 

Fuck.

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

33:  **_preliminaries - ii_ **

 

Sakura and Naruto come join her and Kakashi on the balcony, crowding around her and up against the railing. Team 8 is to their right, Kurenai giving her a nod of encouragement before focusing on her team, the last to make it through the second stage.

 

Team Gai is on their left, and Hoshiko sees her students exchanging looks and nods with Gai’s students before Sakura and Naruto both hyper-focus on the floor.

 

Kakashi sidles up behind her. “He’s going to be fine.”

 

“He can’t use ninjutsu,” She mutters. If he uses ninjutsu it’ll aggravate the seal. “He can’t use his  _ chakra _ .”

 

“He’ll figure it out,” Kakashi gets closer, slinks a sneaky hand around her waist. “Have faith in our little duck.”

 

Sakura snorts and then goes still, pretending like she isn’t listening to their conversation. Naruto grins at them, wide, and then - then the match is starting.

 

Sasuke gets his ass handed to him for the first half of the match. The Uchiha’s struggling not to use his chakra, and his opponent - who  _ steals chakra _ , how low can you get - takes every opening Sasuke gives him.

 

“OI TEME!” Naruto finally yells, as Sasuke’s struggling to get to his feet. “GET OFF YOUR ASS! DON’T EMBARRASS HOSHIKO-SENSEI LIKE THIS!”

 

“ _ Naruto _ ,” Hoshiko sighs, although she’s mostly amused; the jinchuuriki’s words are getting through to Sasuke. He grits his teeth, activates his Sharingan, and  _ moves _ .

 

Sasuke’s figure is a blur as he combines training with Team Gai with her own, cranking out a taijutsu style that’s fast, powerful, and unpredictable. Combined with the shurikenjutsu Hoshiko had taught her team when there was time, the Uchiha makes a dangerous opponent for Yoroi, who finally goes down with a punch straight to the chest.

 

“Uchiha Sasuke wins!” Hayate says unnecessarily, but Hoshiko isn’t paying attention to him, her eyes on Sasuke as he meanders up the steps towards them.

 

“Good job, Sasuke-chan,” She says when he comes within reach, patting his head.

 

Sasuke looks up at her from beneath his bangs, bites his lip, and says, “Thank you, sensei.” Which, of course, causes her to beam and tug him into a bear hug.

 

Hoshiko is so focused on her genin that she doesn’t even notice the eyes glued to her.

 

Kakashi, though, that’s an entirely different story.

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

34:  **_preliminaries - iii_ **

 

The second match is an Oto-nin against one of Kurenai’s kids, Aburame Shino. Hoshiko watches them fight and makes a mental note to schedule a training session between Team Seven and Team Eight.

 

The match is quick and dirty; Shino’s kikakichū make quick work of the Oto-nin’s sound waves  _ and _ arms. It’s not a pretty sight, but none of her genin blanch like most of Team Ten do. 

 

Shino is quickly declared the victor, and then it’s onto the third match: a Konoha genin Hoshiko doesn’t recognize and the puppet-nin from Suna.

 

Her eyes are drawn curiously over to the team of Suna-nin as they watch the boy -  **_Kankuro_ ** , the board proclaims - and she can’t help but watch the jonin-sensei, wondering. It would be just like  _ him _ to jump in a portal after her  they’d been attached, so attached, since the day they met and he looks  _ exactly like him _ .

 

“Hoshiko?” Kakashi asks as the Suna puppeteer finishes up the match. The blonde jerks her gaze away from the Suna jonin and sighs.

 

“Later,” She promises, and he nods. And then the board’s lighting up again.

 

**_Haruno Sakura vs Yamanaka Ino_ ** .

 

The pinkette looks equal parts excited and worried, but she smiles brightly at her teammates and vaults over the railings, landing softly on the floor below.

 

“Why are all my genin such show-offs?” Hoshiko complains good-naturedly. Sasuke snorts and gives her an exasperated look.

 

“Because  **_you’re_ ** a show-off, sensei.”

 

“GO SAKURA!” Naruto bellows, not even paying attention to them. Hoshiko reaches forward, drags him back from the railing, and twists her knuckles gently on his head.

 

“What have we said about volume control, Naruto?” She says.

 

“Sorry, sensei.”

 

The proctor’s started the match, but Ino’s monologuing. Sakura, making Hoshiko proud, chooses to ignore the Yamanaka heir, hand dipping into her pocket and shattering a glass ball against the floor. Smoke billows up and fills the arena, and Hoshiko grins when Sakura  _ moves _ , sword unsheathing from her back smoothly and immediately putting Ino on the defense.

 

Sakura moves with grace and precision, extending her blade to block and attack with little to no wasted energy. Ino’s covered in shallow cuts, and Sakura’s not given her one chance to use her family jutsu.

 

Then Hoshiko’s student  _ disappears  _ for one second and - genjutsu has Ino attacking in wildly the wrong direction. Sakura sneaks up on her, lashes out with the blunt end of her katana - and Ino’s on the ground, out cold.

 

Naruto splits into ear-deafening cheers, and Sasuke claps alongside Hoshiko and Kakashi.

 

Sakura looks up at them as Hayate declares her the winner, and smiles brightly.

 

Hoshiko can’t help but return it.

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

35:  **_preliminaries - iv_ **

 

After Sakura’s match, it’s another kunoichi versus kunoichi - Gai’s student Tenten, and the kunoichi from the Suna team, Temari.

 

They put on a good show, but Tenten’s weapons are no match for Temari’s fan and wind ninjutsu. Hoshiko catches sight of Naruto watching Temari, muttering to himself. She catches the last part of his sentence, a huffed “- _ I _ could  _ do that _ ,” and feels herself smirk.

 

After Temari wins the match - catching Tenten as she falls off the Suna-nin’s fan, setting off Hoshiko’s gaydar - the board whirls again, pitting Shikamaru from Asuma’s team against the Oto kunoichi.

 

Sakura’s eyes follow every move Shikamaru makes as he outsmarts the Oto kunoichi, and the blonde holds back a sigh.

 

“I didn’t think we’d have to deal with romance so soon,” Kakashi murmurs into her ear, and Hoshiko deigns not to answer, elbowing him in the side instead.

 

Shikamaru is declared the winner, and off the monitor goes again.

 

**_Inuzuka Kiba vs Uzumaki Naruto_ **

 

“Awww yes!” Her youngest student screams, punching the air. “It’s my turn to shine!”

 

Sakura and Sasuke exchange looks, and then push him over the railing. 

 

Hoshiko groans, nearly facepalming as Kakashi chuckles.

 

“What the hell teme, Sakura-chan?” Naruto sputters in indignation as he scrambles to his feet.

 

“No one wants to hear you ranting about how this is your first step to becoming Hokage, blah blah blah,” Sakura says nonchalantly, leaning against the balcony. “We just want to see you fight.”

 

“Aa,” Sasuke says, and offers the pinkette a high-five. Sakura takes it, their palms easily slapping together.

 

“I’m going to get you back for this, believe it!” Naruto threatens, finger waving in what he probably thinks is a menacing gesture.

 

“I did not teach you guys teamwork to gang up on one another,” Hoshiko murmurs as Hayate sets to getting the match started.

 

Within an instant, a smoke ball goes off, and Hoshiko can easily smell the chili powder in the air. As Kiba starts cursing, Hoshiko manages to hear the  _ zing _ of ninja wire unrolling, and then Naruto’s off, clones poofing into existence all across the floor.

 

By the time the smoke clears, there are literally  _ hundreds _ of traps criss-crossing the floor in a spider web maze, Kiba and Akamaru suspended in midair, and Naruto’s sitting atop the statue behind the proctors, laughing and scratching the back of his head.

 

“Monsters,” Kurenai hisses to her, and Hoshiko just smirks.

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

36:  **_preliminaries - v_ **

 

After the last few matches, Hoshiko leans against the balcony, watches as the ten preliminary winners line up in front of the Hokage. Sasuke and Naruto are on either side of Sakura in what Hoshiko recognizes is a misdirection, to make her seem the weakest.

 

The Hokage explains that the third stage is a tournament to take place in one month’s time. This declaration has the genin murmuring, and Hoshiko smiles as  _ her _ students stand taller.

 

Anko proffers a box with little paper slips in it, and one by one, the genin reach in and read off the number on their slip.

 

When it’s all said and done, the giant monitor flashes:

 

**FIRST MATCH -** **_Uzumaki Naruto vs Hyuuga Neji_ **

**SECOND MATCH -** **_Kankuro vs Aburame Shino_ **

**THIRD MATCH -** **_Haruno Sakura vs Dosu_ **

**FOURTH MATCH -** **_Temari vs Nara Shikamaru_ **

**FIFTH MATCH** \-  **_Uchiha Sasuke vs Gaara_ **

 

“That is all,” The Hokage says, puffing on his pipe. “Your jonin-sensei will escort you out of the Forest of Death. Spend your month wisely. I look forward to seeing how you all improve.”

 

Hoshiko hops over to collect her genin, Kakashi a step behind her. “I’m so proud of you guys,” She says, relishing in Sakura and Naruto’s beaming grins and Sasuke’s half smile. “I hope you guys are prepared to work your butts off this next month.”

 

“You know it, Hoshiko-sensei!” Naruto cheers as they head for the exit.

 

The blonde smirks; her genin have  _ no _ idea what they’re in for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TATSUYA IS HERE.
> 
> Comments and kudos feed my soul. See you soon, ehehehe~


	10. overdue conversation, dinner & a plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some fluff and wholesomeness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all...it is I, back again with a short, fluffy update. Please remember that Hoshiko is NOT from the Naruto universe because she will be having some western food in this chapter.
> 
> One more thing: I’m halfway through writing the Sasuke v Gaara fight. Progress is HAPPENING.
> 
> Enjoy.

37:  **_an overdue conversation_ **

 

After carting her kids back through the Forest of Death, Hoshiko sends them home to change and gather a change of clothes and necessities so they can crash in her living room tonight (she needs to be able to see them, to watch over them,  _ she was so worried- _ ) and then loops an arm through Kakashi’s and drags him home.

 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Kakashi asks, because he’s perceptive as fuck.

 

Hoshiko sighs and starts dragging her furniture around to make space for her students. “Pull some ground beef out of the freezer, would you?”

 

“Hoshiko,” He says, even as he’s doing as she asked. “I saw how you and the Suna jounin-sensei were looking at each other.”

 

Something catches in the blonde’s heart, and she slumps down onto the couch, head falling onto her arms. “I-“ She swallows. “My homeland is a place very far from here. I don’t even know if it’s possible to go there. But I-I thought everyone from there that I had loved was lost to me.”

 

“Who is he?” Kakashi asks, sitting down on the couch next to her, tugging her i to his side. 

 

The blonde collapses into him, burying her face in his side. “We were going to get married one day,” She finally says, voice cracking.

 

There’s a significant pause, and then the Copy Nin is wrapping his arms around her, mask brushing her forehead as he holds her close.

 

“I’m sorry,” He murmurs into her hair. “I’m  _ so sorry _ , Hoshiko.”

 

The blonde sniffs, indulging in his warmth for a moment, and then pulls back, wiping away unshed tears. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-“

 

Kakashi waves away her apologize. “Maa, it’s fine, I asked,” He says, and then his eye is crinkling as he smiles at her. “You know, he was very pretty, I’d be open to-“

 

At that moment, her genin come charging through her front door, laden down with packs and pillows and what looks like an entire bag filled with snacks.

 

Hoshiko looks at them, looks at Kakashi, and sighs. “We’ll finish this later,” She tells him, poking him in the cheek, and goes to wrangle her kids.

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

38:  **_dinner and a plan_ **

 

“Ne, sensei, what are we making?” Naruto asks twenty minutes in, her kitchen crowded with genin and Kakashi’s ninken.

 

“Where I’m from, we call them tacos,” She says, peering over her genin’s shoulders. “Break the meat up a little more, Naru-chan, and make sure it doesn’t burn,” Hoshiko pauses, watching him carefully. “Good job.”

 

He beams up at her.

 

“Tacos are my second favorite food,” Hoshiko eventually continues, moving to check on Sasuke and Sakura, chopping and prepping ingredients. “My first is-“

 

“Anything green,” Sasuke and Sakura chorus in unison, Kakashi’s voice echoing from the living room a beat later.

 

The blonde pouts as reaches over to correct Sakura’s grip on her knife. “You guys are so mean,” She mock-pouts.

 

“Sensei,” Sasuke says, rolling his eyes. “You have four different flavors of green ice cream in your freezer  _ right now _ .”

 

“Hmph,” The jonin says playfully, turning back to Naruto to check the meat. “No special training for  _ you _ .”

 

“Sensei,” Sakura says in her no-nonsense tone, still cutting tomatoes precisely.

 

Hoshiko’s lips quirk as she just smiles and then turns to help Sasuke mix the salsa together. “ _ Speaking _ of training…”

 

The three genin turn to her, expectant.

 

“Sasu-chan, you’re with Kakashi and Anko,” She tells him, reaching over to squeeze his shoulder. “Speed, Sharingan, lightning ninjutsu with Kakashi-“

 

“ _ Yes _ ,” Sasuke hisses, and then tries to look innocent.

 

“-and Anko will help you get a lock on that seal until we can remove it. Maybe she’ll teach you about poisons, too.”

 

The Uchiha looks intrigued. Smile tugging at her lips, Hoshiko turns to Naruto, who’s looking expectant.

 

“Naruto, wind ninjutsu and taijutsu with me-“

 

“YES!!”

 

“-and fuinjutsu with Iruka-san in the evenings. Something tells me you’ll have a knack for it,” She says, lips curving gently.

 

Naruto’s eyes are wide, and his bottom lip wobbles. “You’re the  _ best _ , sensei.”

 

She ruffles his hair, and turns to her last student, still working, pouring everything into bowls and fetching dishware. “Sakura, you’re with me in the evenings. We’ll forego kenjutsu - Yugao is due to go out of the village on a mission. Enhanced taijutsu and earth ninjutsu instead.”

 

“Yes, sensei,” The girl nods, eyes gleaming, and Hoshiko’s lips curl upward further into a smirk,

 

“Kurenai has also expressed interest in continuing your genjutsu training in the afternoons.”

 

Sakura’s mouth drops open and her eyes go wide. “Really? But - what about Team 8?”

 

“As you know, Kiba and Hinata did not pass the preliminaries,” The jonin says, picking up the stack of plates and carrying them into the dining room, her genin scrambling after her with bowls and utensils. “Shino will be training with his clan, so that frees Kurenai up to teach you after lunch every day. If you want.”

 

“...I think I’d like that, sensei,” Sakura says with a big smile, and Hoshiko can’t help but ruffle the younger kunoichi’s hair.

 

“I’ll set it up,” She promises, then turns on her feet. “ _ Kakashi _ ! DINNER!”

 

“Maa, I’m coming, patience,” The elite jonin grumbles, dogs twining around his legs.

 

“No dogs at the table,” Hoshiko swings her hair over her shoulder, staring down Pakkun and Bull.

 

“Guess that means Kakashi-sensei has to eat in the living room,” Sasuke says solemnly.

 

Naruto laughs so hard he falls out of his chair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos feed my soul. Thank you, everyone, for all the support you’ve given this fic!
> 
> (i still can’t believe this fic is now in TWO collections like whaaaaat)

**Author's Note:**

> I have up to part 43 written already, so this fic should be updated rather regularly, at least once a week. Expect English names dropped eventually - those will be mentions of characters from Hoshiko’s original universe.
> 
> See you next chapter.


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